Cluff Family

Taylor Gets Inducted Into The NJHS

2009-05-04T13:20:00.013-07:00

In order to be part of the NJHS, you must first receive an invitation just to apply. Then you have to fill out an application and answer essay questions and get referrals from teachers etc. Well Taylor was accepted and inducted. We are so proud of her!

NJHS Pledge -

I pledge to maintain high scholastic standing,

To hold as fundamental and worthy an untarnished character,

To endeavor intelligently and courageously,

To be a leader and a good citizen,

And to give of myself freely in service to others.

In so doing, I shall prove myself worthy of a place

In the National Junior Honor Society.

Taylors Birthday Party With Her Friends

2009-04-28T22:40:00.002-07:00

Taylor had a birthday party with a few of her friends, it was a slumber party. The birthday started at 6pm on Friday night. The night went as follows:

-Made and cooked their own pizza's for dinner
-Played on the trampoline while pizza's cooked
-Ate pizza
-Made their own little cakes
-Opened presents
-Made matching bracelets
-Decorated and ate their cakes (sang happy birthday to Taylor)
-Turned on music and sang and danced
-Gave each other make-overs
-Got ready for bed
-Sat in Taylor's room and talked for about 30-45 minutes
-Watched a movie and ate popcorn
-3:30AM lights out.

The girls had to be up at 7:30AM because they needed to be at the church Saturday morning to make enchilada's for their fund raiser for girls camp, so I had to make sure they got at least a little bit of sleep. It was a fun night for all the girls!

Taylor's Regional Tournament

2009-04-24T12:49:00.009-07:00

Taylor has been playing club volleyball since December and her regional tournament was last Saturday. It was a busy day, we had to be to the gym by 7:15am. The first game started at 8am and the last game ended at 6pm. I don't even remember how many games we played, but it was a lot. The girls also had to help the head ref's by being side ref's for other games. The girls played some good games, the last game was the best. The team who wins two out of three games wins. Our team lost the first game by 2 points, won the second game and so we had to go to a 3rd. We started off OK and then we got behind. The score was 9-14, we had 9. You only play to 15 if you make it to a third game instead of your usual 25. Game point for the other team and Taylor's turn to serve, talk about pressure. Her serves were incredible. The other team called timeout a couple times trying to break her serve. It didn't work, she had so much power behind them that she brought the score 15-14. You have to win by two points. Well Taylor served again trying to get that 16 pt, she had a great serve but the other team returned, we returned back and so forth. This went on for a few minutes, but unfortunatley we ended up loosing 19-17. It was a good game and we are so proud of Taylor! It has been so fun watching her play this season!

Me and Taylor at the end of her tournament We didn't get home until almost 7pm. We were pooped, especially Taylor and the little girls. It was a long day for Alyssa and Mikayla. Jordan got kind of tired towards the end. The girls are use to going to tournaments, but a regular tournament last about 6 hours, regionals was a lot longer. The girls cheered for Taylor and her team, they were so supportive. Me and Clint about had a heart attach during the last game and I lost my voice by the end of the day, but we had a lot of fun!

Easter

2009-04-18T11:22:00.001-07:00

Easter weekend started saturday morning for us. First we went out for brunch for Taylor's birthday. Then we went over to my mom and dads house.
The kids decorated eggs

We also had an easter egg hunt. The kids loved running arund gathering eggs with their cousins.

It was then party time. Coming from a hispanic family we love music, we put on some reggaeton.

Latter that evening after dinner we had cupcakes for Taylors Birthday. The cupcakes were shaped like an easter basket. It was so cute, Taylor picked them out at Sam's Club to take over to my moms.

Then Sunday morning the girls woke up to find that the Easter Bunny had come. They were excited about what they recieved.

Then the girls got dressed in their new easter dresses and off the church we went.

HOPE EVERYONE HAD A HAPPY EASTER!

Happy 13th birthday Taylor

2009-04-11T08:54:00.001-07:00

Well my little girl is now thirteen, she is officially a teenager. I can not believe how time fly's. One day when me and Clint had only been married for about 10 months I came home from work to find my bathroom sink full of baby itiems. Like baby food, rattle, bib, baby magazine, bottle etc. I asked Clint "what's all this?" He told me that we have a little girl up in heaven and she is waiting to come down to our home. How can you argue with that. Ten months later she was born. All I can say is what joy she has brought to our home. She was a good baby and an even better toddler, she was very easy going and by the time she was 18 months old she spoke like a 3yr old. I loved dressing her and taking her out. Over the last 13 years she has grown up to be quit a wonderful young lady. I remember when she was about twelve and starting to transition from little girl to young lady(teenager). One second she would be my sweet little girl and then out of the blue ten minutes latter talk about an attitude. I remember praying and asking the Lord to help me be a good mother to this pre-teen, help me to understand her and to be patient. I aked for guidance on knowing what to do. I tell you there were times I didn't even know how to handle this new kid. I received several promptings and inspiration from the Lord. Me and Taylor have become the best of friends. She tells me everything that goes on in her life, what she is feeling, what is going on with her friends, school, church, boys, everything. We can just sit on her bed and talk away. Clint can't believe everything I know and what she tells me. We have such fun together, we laugh and joke and she is such a huge help to me. She is a wonderful student, She gets all A's and all of her teachers just love having her in there class. She loves to read, watch movies, attend her church activities and have sleep overs with her friends. She also enjoys going to the lake and on vacation. She plays volleyball for her school and also plays club volleyball, she also enjoys swimming and swims every summer for the swim team. She is a great big sister and her sister love her and look up to her. We are so grateful to have her in our home and how fortunate we feel that the lord has blessed us with her. I am very blessed to have been given the privlege of being her mother. She bring us so much joy and happiness, we just wouldn't be complete without her. We love you Taylor!!! Happy Birthday!!!!

Busy Week

2009-03-30T12:29:00.007-07:00

Last Monday myself and Clint went to Houston, Texas. One of our suppliers sent us, they also sent Chuck who is our rep from their company to go with us. He was a great host and made sure we were taken care of during the trip. Once we arrived at the airport we had a driver waiting to take us to our hotel. They put us up in a really nice hotel, we were super impressed. After we checked in Chuck to us out to dinner. We went to this fabulous restaurant called Foco de Chao. It is a Brazilian steak house. The food was so good, we had some of the best steaks. The service was also wonderful. If I had to get up from the table someone was there to pull the chair out for me and when I returned someone was there to pull it back out for me. The food and service was amazing. After dinner we went back to our hotel and Chuck spoke to the concierge and was asking him what places he recommended going to. We went to a place called Sam's Boat. They had music playing and TV screens showing sports(which Clint loved). We ordered soda's and talked and then we ordered dessert. We then went back to our hotel and went to bed. We got to sleep in the next morning which was nice. We met Chuck and the rest of our group in the hotel ball room for lunch. Lunch was great and once again we had great service. We then loaded up in charter buses and went to Goodman. We toured the warehouse and the plants were they make the air conditioning units. It was very interesting and I have to say I learned a lot. When we were done we went back to our hotel, they were having a social hour in the ball room. Since Chuck doesn't drink and neither do we and we were kind of tired so we went up to our rooms to rest for a little bit. We then went to dinner. We went to this Italian restaurant called Mingalone. They reserved the upstairs dining room for our group. It was a very nice restaurant. We had appetizers, salad, bread, four entree's and dessert. We were so stuffed. The food was wonderful and we had a good time. We then went back to our hotel to crash. We got up the next morning and had breakfast at the hotel restaurant which was great. We then loaded up the buses and went to Goodman corporate offices. They had more drinks and snacks for us when we arrived, I think I gained a couple of pound while we were there. We had some presentations and then they had lunch brought in. Lunch was great as usual and then we went back to the hotel. We sat in the Lobby and talked until our driver arrived. We then went to the airport and arrived back home at about 8:30pm. It was a short trip, but it was nice to get away even though business was involved. We had a good time. My brother Oscar kept our kids while we were away, I am sure his house was busy. Thursday I did a few things at home and then I had to catch up on some work in the office so I worked most of the afternoon.

Well Thursday night Oscar dropped off his boys and it was my turn to take care of the kids. Oscar and his wife Luisa took off for a few days to go and celebrate their anniversary and Oscars birthday. The kids had fun playing together, it was definitely busy and crazy at times, no sleeping in for me. Friday Clint's sister Roma and her family came down for the day so I had a full house. Roma has five kids plus her husband. The kids had fun playing together. Saturday I took the kids to the park and then we went grocery shopping. I had to go to Costco, Sprouts and Fry's. I had several people stop and ask me "are all these kids yours??" I guess people thought I was nuts when they saw me with six kids. Everything went well we even stopped at the snack bar at Costco for ice cream and churros. As soon as we got home I fed the kids dinner and then I took the four little ones a bath and but them to bed. I let Taylor and Jordan stay up and do there own thing for a while. Sunday we woke up, and the kids played and I cleaned, then time to get everyone ready for church. The one good thing about boys is that they are so much easier to get ready, their hair takes about 2 seconds to comb. After church we had dinner and then I took Jacob and Josh home around 7pm. Luisa's mom was there waiting for them. Jacob didn't want to leave and neither did Josh. They had fun playing. After I dropped them off I put my younger two girls to bed. About 30 minutes after I put them to bed Alyssa came down stairs, when I asked her what was wrong she started crying and said "I just can't stop thinking about Jacob and Josh." She missed her cousins. It was definitely a busy week but lots of fun.

Miss. Pre-Teen Phoenix Pageant

2009-03-16T11:03:00.021-07:00

Jordan had the opportunity to compete in the Miss. Pre-Teen Phoenix Pageant. She was judged in three categories. Her interview with the judges, casual wear and formal wear. This was her very 1st pageant ever and she did a great job and looked very beautiful. The top ten get to go to the nationals in December. Unfortunatley, she did not make it to the top ten and she was very sad about that. I told her Just having the opportunity to participate, and the fact that she had fun, she learned a lot, she got to go shopping and she made new friends was a great experience in itself.

This was the evening before the pageant when she had her interview with the judges. There were four of them.

This is during the casual wear competion at the pageant

This is her back stage just before going on stage to compete in formal wear. It was so cute, when Mikayla first saw Jordan's dress after we bought it and brought it home she said, " Wow, Jordan's going to be Bell" (from the disney movie Beauty and the Beast) .

This was her on stage competing in formal wear and she also had to answer a question from the judges. Her question was "If you could go anywere in the world were would it be and why"

It was a long day, Jordan and myself had to be at the auditorium by 9:45am for rehearsal, we took a lunch break at 1:00 and were back by 2:oopm, we stood in line and waited for the back doors to open at 2:30 to go and get ready, pagenat started at 4pm and we left around 10pm and got home around 10:30pm. This was a really fun experience for Jordan. It was also great that I had to opportunity to spend so much time with Jordan and do something with her. There are many things that you have to do to be part of a pageant. There is the first meeting were you apply to be in the pageant and go before a judge. Then once you are accepted you have a training class to go to, then there is the interview with the judges the night before the pageant and rehearsal and the pageant which take all of one day. And then of course there is shopping and we had to have her dress altertered so there were 3 fitting for that. I enjoyed spending all this time with her, even though it was stressful at times trying to get everygthing done in the two weeks you have. One of my favorite things was helping her backstage. Doing her hair & make-up and helping her dress was fun. I also meet a few really nice mom's. Several girls and moms came up to Jordan and compemented her on how beautiful she looked and I think that made her feel really good. Even though Jordan was sad that she didn't make it to the top ten, she had a lot of fun and had a great experience, who knows maybe she will decide she wants to do this again.

Trip To The Grand Canyon

2009-02-27T23:50:00.000-07:00

The 7th grade at Taylor's school took a field trip to the Grand Canyon today. I was able to go as a chaperon. We arrived at the school at 5AM and didn't get back to the school until 11:30PM. We rode the buses up to Williams, AZ and from there we took a 2 hour train ride to the Grand Canyon. We then meet up with our Ranger for our group. I have to say it was very interesting, I learned a lot about the Grand Canyon. When you look into the Grand Canyon it looks like a painting, very pretty. After we were done with our Ranger we had time to go to the gift shop and hang out a little bit. We came back home through Flagstaff, AZ. It was pretty cold up at the Grand Canyon, but it was actually nice to go up to the cold for the day. I really enjoyed spending the day with Taylor. I was afraid that the kids in my group were going to be trouble makers, but they were so good. They were very respectful and they listened and did what they were told. At the end of the day The boys said to me "Mrs. Cluff thank you for being our chaperon." I really enjoyed having these kids in my group. We had a good time, but we were sure tired by the time we got back to the school. Just before we boarded the train Our Group

Taylor looking into the Canyon through the telescope

Special Experience

2009-02-17T18:01:00.004-07:00

Sister Mary Cook, first counselor in the Young Women General Presidency came down from Salt Lake to speak at a fireside at our church on Sunday the 8th. It was a fireside for Young women and their mothers, so I had the opportunity to go with Taylor. Not only did Taylor have the opportunity to go to the fireside and sit 4th row, but Sister cook went to her young womens class during our Sunday meeting earlier that day. She spoke to the girls and Taylor even received a hug from Sister Cook. Taylor really enjoyed her visit and her message, she is such a wonderful lady with such a great spirit. What a great opportunity this was for Taylor. I know I never had an opportunity like this when I was a youth, I was so happy that Taylor did.

Alyssa's Birthday

2009-02-07T23:55:00.003-07:00

It is my Alyssa's 6th birthday today. She was so excited for her birthday that she came running into my room this morning, woke me up and said "Mom Mom it's my birthday today!" It's hard to believe that she is already six years old. I remember the day she was born, this was our only child that we didn't find out ahead of time what we were having. We already had two girls so we thought this one was going to be a boy. Surprise, out came a beautiful blond little girl. I am so greatful that my 3rd little girl came, I can't imagine our family without her. What a blessing she has been to our family, how thankful I am that she was sent to our home. I feel truely humbled to be her mother. She is such a bright little girl, she loves school and does very well. She loves all of the disney princesses, especially Sleeping Beauty and The Little Mermaid. She loves to color, read and play games. She also loves dance class and swimming. She enjoys playing outside with her sisters and friends. She loves helping me cook. She is a wonderful sister, especially to Mikayla. Mikayla loves her so much and can't wait everyday until Alyssa get's home from school to play with her. Alyssa try's really hard to do what is right, we are blessed to have her sweet spirit in our home. We love you Alyssa!!

Christmas 2008

2008-12-30T23:21:00.001-07:00

Christmas was a very busy time for us, however lots of fun. We had several family christmas party's that we went to and of course christmas at home with our kids. I think my favorite part of christmas is watching my kids open their presents. It is also wonderful to remember the birth of our savior Jesus Christ. We have been blessed over this last year and for that we are thankful.

Dance Recital

2008-12-13T23:46:00.001-07:00

Well today was the dance recital for Jordan, Alyssa, & Mikayla. Jordan performed in three numbers and also got to hand out programs at the door. Alyssa & Mikayla each performed in one number. Alyssa and Jordan were also able to perform in the daddy daughter dance with Clint. Alyssa did the part with the younger girls and Jordan did the part with the older girls. Mikayla will have to have a turn next recital. So many girls and only one Clint. Clint does not dance, he hates it and he has two left feet. The girls love doing the daddy daughter dance with him. He is such a good sport and Dad that he practices and does the dance with them. He did a great job. The girls did a great job as well. Mikayla's dress was too cute, all the little girls looked like little princesses. This was Mikayla's first recital and she really enjoyed it and did the cutest job. Alyssa loved her dress, she especially loved the sparkles and the flowing skirt. She was just adorable. Jordan did so good in all three of her numbers. Jordan is so graceful when she dances, She just loves to perform. It is so much fun and so cute watching the girls perform, not to mention how cute they look in their dresses.

Blog Catch-Up

2008-11-22T14:51:00.057-07:00

Well I have gotten a little behind on my blogging, so I will catch up on this blog.

ALYSSA GETS GLASSES

We received a letter from the school nurse letting us know that Alyssa may need glasses. Apparently when the school did there annual eye testing Alyssa didn't do as well as she should have. I made an appointment with the eye doctor. Alyssa did great during her eye exam, the doctor told me that she has astigmatism in her right eye and is far sided in her left eye. The doctor said that by wearing her glasses her vision may correct itself, that is what we are hoping for. Alyssa picked out her glasses. She saw a pair of purple & pink glasses and that is what she wanted. I think she was even more excited about the purple case with pink and blue stars on it. The doctors office called and let us know that her glasses were in, so we went and picked them up today. She like's her glasses, so we are glad & she looks cute! She doesn't have to wear them all the time, just when she does school work, home work, reads or colors.

MY LITTLE STINKER

Well on Wednesday (11/19/08) I went visiting teaching. I left Mikayla at home with my Aunt Sonia. While I was gone my aunt went to the bathroom and Mikayla was sitting on the couch watching cartoons. When my aunt came out Mikayla was gone. My aunt started calling her name and Mikayla would not answer. My aunt looked upstairs and downstairs, no sign of Mikayla, she went in the back yard and still no sign of Mikayla, she went out to the front yard and still no sign of Mikayla. She came back in the house and was calling her name and still no answer, she decided to go upstairs again, at this point my poor aunt was in tears and was getting ready to call me when Mikayla appeared out of no where. Well it turns out she was told she couldn't have any more candy and so when my aunt went to the bathroom she grabbed some candy out of the pantry and went and hid in her closet to eat it.

Oh and the next morning I was talking to her and I told her that I loved her, she just looked at me and put her hand on her hip and said "Oh yea, prove it"

DAVID AND DIANE'S WEDDING

On Saturday 11/15/08 Clint's step-brother David got married. He was married in the Arizona Temple. What a busy day. We had to be at the temple by 10am, which meant we had to leave our house by 9am, which meant we had to be up by 7am. After the wedding their was pictures of course, Clint's Uncle John was the photographer (he is a really good photographer). After the wedding was the family luncheon, we then went to the hotel where some of Clint's family was staying. Clint and Lason(Clint's Step-brother) took our kids and Lason's kids swimming in the hotel pool and me, Phyllis(Clint's mom) and Joleen(Lason's wife) went to go decorate for the reception. Well then of course we had the reception and then we had an hour drive home. We got home at about 10pm. It was a wonderful sealing, the spirit was wonderful in the sealing room and the reception turned out great. We don't know Diane very well yet, but we look forward to getting to know her. David is just wonderful, I have no doubt that he will be a great husband and father!!

Clint and David

Our family with David & Diane

Family members on Clint's side of the family

Jordan caught the bouquet. This is the 3rd bouquet she has caught, she caught my cousin Tanya's, Clint's cousin Sonia's and Diane's

TIME OUT FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS

Time out for women is put on by Deseret Book and they came to Arizona on Saturday 11/8/08. Normally it is just time out for women, but this year they added the girls (ages 12-18). I went with my friend Jennifer Foxx and her daughter Elizabeth. It was absolutely wonderful. What a great spirit that we felt while we were there. Jenny Jordan Frogley, Cherie Call, Abe Mill from Jericho Road and Hilary Weeks performed. They were fabulous, their music is so good. I bought Taylor Cd's from each of these LDS artist and she met them and had them sign her CD cover. John Hilton III and Laurel Christensen were Motivational speakers and they were good as well. It went from 9am-3pm. Well worth the tickets. Taylor really enjoyed it and she loves her new Cd's. It was nice to be able to spend time with Taylor and do something together.

Me and my Taylor

Taylor & Elizabeth

We each received on of these book bags

ALYSSA LOST HER FIRST TOOTH

On Saturday evening (11/8/08) Alyssa lost her first tooth. She was so excited, Clint helped her pull it out and it didn't even hurt. She put her tooth under her pillow and of course the tooth fairy came, That was the most exciting part for her.

TAYLOR'S VOLLEYBALL PICTURES

Volleyball Season Is Over

2008-11-05T22:00:00.001-07:00

Volleyball season at the school has ended for Taylor. This evening the team got together for awards and cake. Taylor and Diana (the other girl that was captain of the team along with Taylor) both received the award for being the anchors of the team. Taylor is sad that the season is now over. I am going to miss going to her games. She did very well and we are proud of her efforts.

Election Day

2008-11-04T23:59:00.002-07:00

Since today was election day, our ward asked for some volunteer's to stand out by the school where everyone in our district goes to vote and hold our yes on prop 102 signs. We stood out there for hours. We were so tired by the end of the day, but we feel so strongly about this issue. All and all the day went pretty good. We had one guy roll down his window and call Clint a homo-hater and another guy mumbled something under his breath as he walked by(we are sure it wasn't anything nice). Other than that we had several people who thanked us for standing out there, we also had lots of people giving us thumbs up and a few people with questions about the prop. We are so glad that prop 102 passed.

Grandma & Grandpa Merrells House

2008-11-03T21:13:00.003-07:00

On Saturday we got up and drove to Safford for Clint's cousin Darci's wedding. After the wedding we went to Clint's Grandparents house in Duncan, it's about 40 minutes from Safford. We ate dinner with them and we spent the night, we also spent Sunday with them. Grandma and Grandpa Merrell are absolutely wonderful, they have always been so good to me. I never had the opportunity of growing up with my grandparents, they have always lived in Bolivia. They would come and visit once every 5-8 years or so, so it has been so great having Grandma and Grandpa Merrell in my life for over 14 years now. I am glad that my children have had the opportunity to know their great grandparents. We left Sunday evening around 6pm, they live 4 hours away so we got home around 10pm. It was a nice visit!

The girls had so much fun driving and riding in the back of Grandpa's little tractor. They drove it all over Grandpa's property.

Halloween Trunk-R-Treat Party

2008-10-30T21:02:00.011-07:00

Well tonight was our wards Halloween Trunk-R-Treat party. They had chillie and corn bread for dinner. All the kids walked around in a cirlce and showed off their costumes, and the best part of all the trunk-r-treat. The kids walked from car to car getting candy. The girls had several pieces of candy eaten by the time we got home.
Trick-R-Treating

Alyssa and Mikayla with their bags full of candy

Alyssa and Mikayla with their cousins Josh and Jacob(my brother Oscar's kid's)

Jordan

Jordan and her friend Rachael.

Taylor

Taylor and her friends, Afton and Lauren.

My Girls

Vote Yes on Prop 102

2008-10-29T22:51:00.003-07:00

Me and Clint signed up to help pass out door hangers for Prop 102 this evening. We met at the Foxx's home along with some other volunteers from the ward. We were given a map of the area that we needed to cover and a stack of door hangers. We walked and walked, we had to go back to the Foxx's home twice to get more door hangers. Our feet were tired by the time we finished, but we were glad that we were able to help. We strongly believe that marriage between a man and a women is ordained of God. Don't forget to vote yes on prop 102!

One Man
One Women
That's Marriage

Quirks

2008-10-28T22:25:00.004-07:00

I have been tagged by my lovely friend Meagan to reveal a few of my quirks. So here goes!

1. I talk to myself. I can carry on a conversation with just myself. My husband and kids will walk in the room and say "who were you talking to?" I say nobody and they say " you were talking to yourself again." I must be slowly going crazy.

2. After I have an argument or disagreement with someone I will replay the whole situation (talking to myself of course) with what I should have said or done, until I am satisfied with how the argument or disagreement should have ended(with me winning of course).

3. I enjoy getting pedicures, but I could never give one. I think it is discusting. I always look at peoples feet and think how gross it would be to give certain people pedicures. Some people have very nice feet and others are just yuck!

4. I am OCD when it comes to my children. When many people are counting down the days for summer or other school holidays to be over so that their kids can go back to school, I am sad to send mine back to school. If I could I would keep my kids home with me all the time and we would just hang out or do fun things together. I don't know what I will do when my children leave me. I may need to be institutionalized. I can't imagine my life without my kids at home with me. I am already panicking about the fact that Taylor may leave and go to college out of state instead of going to college close to home. Hello, she is twelve. I just want to do everything for them and be there for all of there events, games etc and I want to give them things that I never had and the list goes on. . . . . . . . . .

5. If I am woken up in the middle of a dream I have to go back to sleep and finish it, even if it means finishing it the next night. I can't leave my dreams unfinished, with no ending.

I now tag Tanya, Natalie and Tammy

Personal Progress Goal

2008-10-26T22:09:00.000-07:00

One of Taylor's personal progress goals was in the value of knowledge. She had to make a list of talents she has and would like to develop. Then she had to learn a new skill or talent that would help her in her future family or home. The skill she chose to work on was cooking. She cooked Sunday dinner for us. I was in the kitchen with her the whole time guiding her and telling her what she needed to do, but she cooked the whole meal all by herself. She made mashed potatoes, pork chops, grilled onions, and salad for dinner and oreo cheesecake for desert! It all turned out great. She said she had fun, but it was a lot of work. Good job Taylor!!

Quarterly Awards

2008-10-24T21:43:00.000-07:00

Well today at my kids school they had an assembly for the quarterly awards. Certain kids in each grade received different awards. Jordan received the Mighty Mathematician Award and Taylor received the Principal List Award(this means she got all A's). Out of the whole 7th grade only 6 or 7 made Principals List. I am so proud of my girls, they work so hard at school!

Legoland

2008-10-20T15:30:00.003-07:00

Me and the kids got back from Utah Wednesday afternoon. We unloaded the car, repacked, picked up Clint and headed to California. We got to our hotel late Wednesday night. Thursday evening we were planning on going to Mickeys halloween party at Disneyland. When I tried to buy tickets they told me that they were sold out. I was so disappointed. I was more disappointed for my kids because they were looking forward to it. I didn't know that the tickets sold out. I thought that it worked just like buying regular Disneyland tickets. They informed me that the halloween party was sold out for the whole weekend. We looked into buying tickets from craigs list and we could only find one. There was nothing we could do, so we took the kids to the beach that evening instead. The next day we drove to Legoland in Carlsbad, California. Carlsbad is very pretty. We went to Legoland for 2 days. The first day we rode rides. The second day we rode rides, the kids got their faces painted, they went trick or treating down the brick or treat road and we stayed for the Halloween party that night and the kids dressed up in there costumes. The next morning when we woke up Mikayla didn't want to go home she said she wanted to go ride more rides. Everyone had lots of fun!!

Alyssa loved chasing the birds on the beach

Taylor and Jordan strolling down the beach.

Alyssa and Mikayla playing in the sand

Legoland

Going trick or treating down the Brick or Treat road

Posing with Princess Lilly

This ride was crazy, I rode it with Jordan and then Taylor.

The girls all ready for the Halloween party that evening.

Trip To Utah

2008-10-20T14:01:00.017-07:00

Well, I went up to Utah on Tuesday the 7th. I went with my girls, Clint had to work so he stayed home. We went up for a family reunion/memorial for my grandpa. October 11th marked the one year anniversary of my grandpa's death. My Uncle wanted to have a reunion and a memorial honoring his life on that day. My uncle reserved the church building and that is were we had the reunion on Saturday the 11th. I forgot my camera at my aunts house that day so I don't have any pictures of the reunion, but it was a nice day. It went from about 11am-8pm. My uncle planned a very nice program. We all enjoyed ourselves and we really appreciate all the time and work that my aunt and uncle put into planning that day. The rest of the time we spent hanging out with family. It was great to spend time with my aunts and uncles and cousins.

My cousin David, myself, my cousin Steve, my sister Patsy and cousin Robert

Jordan, My Uncle Hernan and Taylor

Jordan, my cousin Robert, my aunt Shirley, and my uncle Juan Carlos

Alyssa, Jaiden(my sister Patsy's daughter) and Mikayla swinging in my uncles back yard.

Jordan, my cousin Robert, Taylor, My cousin Kayla, Alyssa. my cousin David and my cousin Steve playing air hockey. My kids loved playing air hockey

There was no rest for Robert with so many kids around.

Taylor, Kayla, My cousin David's wife Megan, David, their baby Lydia and Jordan

Alyssa, Mikayla, Kattia (My cousin Kattia's daughter) and Jaiden

My sister Patsy, my cousin Claudia and her Baby Caden and My cousin Kattia and her baby Hope.

Fall Break

2008-10-05T20:30:00.006-07:00

Well, Friday was the last day of school before fall break. My kids now have 2 weeks off. Yea!! I had parent teacher conferences on Thursday and I am so proud of my girls (yes, I am going to brag. I am a mom, I am allowed). Taylor and Jordan have always been great students, it is sure nice to add one more child to that list. Alyssa's teacher told me what a great student Alyssa is and also how respectful she is. In our district k-5 grades are graded in each subject with FFB(falls far below), AP(approaching), M(meets) and E(exceeds). Alyssa is meeting and exceeding in her subjects. She also received a certificate because she is one out of two students in her class that has never moved her light off of green so far this year. They start off on green everyday. If they get a warning they move to yellow and if they get in trouble again they move to red. Jordan is also meeting and exceeding. She is super good in math, her teacher said that she is always done with her math early and so she gets to go and work on the computer. Her teacher also said that Jordan is very respectful and well behaived. Taylor received All A's. She definitly has worked hard. She has had to stay up late on many nights doing homework due to her volleyball schedule. She has managed school and her sports and other activites very well. Her teachers also told me that she is a pleasure to have in class. I can't complain, my conferences are very rewarding. I have been blessed with wonderful daughters. I told my girls that if they received good grades I would take them to the book fair and buy them a book (this is considered a reward to them, they LOVE to read). They each picked out a book and will start on them after they are done with the books they are currently reading! Well now we will have fun for the next 2 weeks!!!!

Getting Ready For Bed

2008-09-30T22:54:00.009-07:00

I am watching my nieces Jaiden and Alaina (my sister Patsy's kids) tonight and part of tomorrow. My sister and her husband are getting on a plane to Jamaica tonight. Bed time was a little busier tonight. 4 little girls to bathe, 4 little bodies to dress, 4 sets of teeth to brush, 4 heads of hair to blow dry, 3 little girls to take potty and 1 diaper to change, and 4 little girls to put to bed. Oh, and don't forget 4 sippy cups to fill, can't go to bed with out those or stuffed animals for all 4. The girls have so much fun when they are together!!

Mikayla, Jaiden, Alaina and Alyssa just after their baths

Watching A Movie

2008-09-26T22:18:00.002-07:00

Today I watched my nephew Jacob for a couple of hours while my sister-in-law Luisa(my brother Oscars wife) went to the salon. Luisa dropped Jacob off in the morning. Mikayla likes company during the day, especially since she is all alone while her sisters are in school. Mikayla and Jacob were watching the disney movie "Dinosaur." They were both sitting in these little kid chairs covered in blankets and very much into their movie. I just thought it was to cute.

Getting Our Hair Done

2008-09-20T23:08:00.007-07:00

Natalie (Clint's cousin) came over to our house today to cut and color hair. Natalie has been doing my hair for over 3 years now and I just love how she does my hair. She definitely had her hands full today. She cut, highlighted and colored my aunts hair, cut and highlighted my hair, and cut my moms, Taylor's, Jordan's, Alyssa's and Mikayla's hair. Thanks Natalie! Your Awesome!

Natalie and Mikalya

Alyssa getting her hair cut

Natalie coloring my Aunt Sonya's hair

Natalie and Taylor. Natalie had a date tonight, so she got ready at our house. She is getting ready to leave on her date! She looked very pretty!

Our visit to Dr. Lason Barney's Office

2008-09-19T22:14:00.002-07:00

Well today the kids only went to school for two hours and then we pulled them out to go to the dentist. Except for Taylor stayed in school all day, she had volleyball pictures after school today and she also had practice. She didn't want to miss pictures and she was afraid that if she missed parictice she would miss playing time at her next game. Taylor will have to go on our next trip back. We drove to Wilcox which is three hours from our house to go see Lason (Clints step-brother). He is a dentist and he has an office in Wilcox, AZ. Clints mom and Step-dad (Phyllis and Leland) have been married for about 16 or 17 yrs now. When they married Phyllis had 5 kids and Leland had 8 kids, so together they have 13 children. Clint has lots of siblings, but it is great. When we get together at Christmas it is definitely a full house. Anyway, Lason was so great, and his staff was also very nice. We kept him busy all afternoon. Lason has a TV in his office and the kids hung out in their while all the dental work was done. Mikayla and Alyssa had tons of cavities. I think they inherited those Cluff teeth. Mikayla had 8 and Alyssa had 6, Jordan had none and Clint and myself each had one. Mikayla and Alyssa have to go back for one more visit, Lason was only able to fix half of there cavities. It is hard for little kids to hold still for that long. My kid were so excited because Lason's office gave them little bags with princess toothburshes, toothpaste, a small hourglass and they got to pick toys out of the treasure box. They love their bags, and they make sure to use their hourglass when brushing their teeth. I didn't realize how long they should be brushing until we started using the hourglass. Thank You Lason!! It sure is nice to have such wonderful family!

Mikayla in the dental chair, getting ready for x-rays.

Alyssa in the dental chair waiting to have her cavities filled

Jordan in the dental chair right after getting her x-rays.

Alyssa getting her teeth worked on.

Clint getting his tooth worked on. Clint hates going to the dentist. His gavity was huge, He had a hole in his tooth.

The girls were talking to Lason just before we left

Taylor's Volleyball Team Wins!

2008-09-15T22:23:00.009-07:00

Taylors volleyball team won their first match today. They lost the first two matches last week. As you know the best 2 out of 3 games wins the match. Today Taylors team won the 1st game, lost the second and won the third for a victory! Taylor played great! I think the parents get more nervous than the kids.
Taylor and her team mates getting ready to go in for the 3rd game

Serving

Diving and saving the ball

Hitting the ball over

Team work. The girl behind Taylor hit the ball and then Taylor hit it after her and made it over the net.

Fall Dance Classes Begin

2008-09-15T21:57:00.005-07:00

Today Jordan, Alyssa and Mikayla started the fall dance session. This is a recital session, so they will be performing in a recital in December. Mikayla was especially excited because this was her 1st day ever in dance. She has been watching her older sisters go to dance just waiting until she was old enough to go. They have to be three to go to class. She did great today, she kept saying how much she loved it. Alyssa was excited to start up again after summer. Jordan was just born to dance, she loves it so much. She has such grace and she can memorize any routine you teach her in no time. The three of them had a great time today!
Mikayla getting ready for her 1st day of dance class

COUSINS
Mikayla is in the same dance class as Jaiden (My sister Patsy's daughter).

Alyssa standing in line getting ready to go into class.

Jordan was showing me part of a routine they learned in class today.

My 34th Birthday

2008-09-13T21:33:00.003-07:00

Today was my 34th birthday. I can't believe it. My girls and Clint made me a great breakfast this morning. I then received my presents and my cards, very sweet. We then went to the lake for the day! We love the lake! My parents and my sibling all called me on my birthday to wish me a great day. My brothers were in Vegas for a concert and they even called me. We went to my parents house the next day for my birthday dinner. I have been very blessed in my life and I am so thankful for my family and for all that the Lord has blessed me with!
Me, Taylor and Jordan on the wave runner. Taylors friend Jenifer on the tube. Jenifer came with us today. She is a great girl and a good friend of Taylors. She has no siblings so she loves hanging out with our family.

Clint, Alyssa and Mikayla on the other wave runner

Clint and Jordan pulling the tube with Jenifer and Taylor on it.

Jordan riding on the tube.

Clint and Jordan pulling Taylor and Jenifer.

Mexico Vacation

2008-09-12T22:48:00.006-07:00

We went to the beach in Mexico for the Labor Day Weekend with Clint's family. Our kids just love it. We spend all day Playing in the ocean or on the beach, riding quads, riding wave runners, gathering sea shells or just relaxing. Clints mom and step-dad (Phyllis and Leland) own some property right on the beach. Leland brings all the food down and him and the boys do the cooking, the food was great! My girls think that Grandpa Barney (Leland) is the funnest. He let Taylor and Jordan drive his Durango down the beach while he sat in the passangers seat. Lason (Clints Step-brother) brought down some fire works, so we had a night full of fun letting them off. Over all we had a great time. Our kids said that the weekend went by to fast!

Taylor giving Grandpa Barney a ride

Alyssa smiling for the camera

Mikayla Posing

Taylor getting ready for a spin on the wave runner.
Jordan playing in the ocean.
Jordan Posing.
Taylor Posing.

Sisters

The Cluff Clan

First Day of School

2008-09-02T13:28:00.000-07:00

My oldest three girls started school about 3 weeks ago. The summer just flew by. Mikayla is my only one left at home. I was not ready for Alyssa to leave me this year, but what can you do. Many tears flowed that day. I asked Alyssa if she wanted to stay home with me for one more year and she said " Mom I have to go to school, I need to learn." What can you do? She wants to be just like her big sisters and go to school. She just loves school and her teacher. Mikayla is having a little bit of an adjustment. Alyssa and Mikayla played so well together during the day and now Mikayla has lost her playmate. By 9AM she is ready and asking to go pick up Alyssa. Jordan has started 5th grade. She made the news crew as an anchor. Tuesday mornings is her day to broadcast the school news. She really enjoys it. Taylor has started 7th grade. She likes her classes and teachers this year. She tried out for the Volleyball team and made it. Her team voted on two team captains and she was voted as one of them. She really enjoys playing volleyball and being part of the team.

The girls on the first day of school. Our school has uniforms.(navy blue or khaki bottoms and hunter green, navy blue, white or gray shirts)